Palletized sinks



Dec. 26, 1961 J. E. STORCK PALLETIZED smxs I Filed June 9, 1960 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 FIG. 3

INVENTOR. JACK E. STORCK BY 4 ATTORNEY 3,014,581 Patented Dec. 26, 19 61 .thce

. 3,014,581 PALLETIZED SINKS Jack E. Storck, Alliance, Ohio, assignor to Allianceware, Inc.

Filed June 9, 1960, Ser'. No. 34,99 9 Claims. (Cl. 206-65) This invention relates to palletized porcelainized sinks. Sinks andlavatories are similar in general structure, although they may be different in details, such as their outline. The term sink will be used herein in its general sense to include all such structures. The terms single and double will refer to such structures with a single bowl andwith two bowls, respectively.

The supporting plate of the pallet is preferably raised oil the floor so that a strap or other tie means can readily be located under it, as will be evident from what follows. This supporting plate is usually made from spaced boards of unfinished lumber, and this necessitates covering it with some protective material such as a fiberboard base cover, to prevent scratching of sinks inverted on it,-and also to protect the bottom sink from being damagedv by an object making contact therewith between the boards. There are retainers formed of small blocks of wood which are fastened to the edge of the top surface of the pallet to hold the base cover in place. They also position the one or more corrugated tubes which surround the sinks or the like, as will be explained.

A single pallet may hold one or more stacks of sinks. A single stack may comprise as many as ten, fifteen, or twenty or more sinks. i

The sinks are inverted and nested one ontop of the other. There is a shallow, stiff spacer tube, preferably of corrugated fiberboard, surrounding the bowl of each of the inverted sinks. Protection pads of fiberboard or the like reston each invertedbowl to protect it from the sink above it, and there are preferably-two such pads crisscrossed at right angles over the bottom of each bowl, with the two ends of each pad tucked in the space between the bottom of the bowl and the spacer tube which surrounds it. t

supporting plate of spaced boards 6. Small blocks 8 serve as retainers at the corners and also, preferably, at the middle of the sides of the top of the pallet. The base cover 10, which may be fiberboard, rests on the supporting surface of the pallet and fits snugly within the retainers 8.

The porcelainized double sinks each comprise two bowls 12 with a drain opening 13 inthe bottom of each.

The shelf '14 extends horizontally outwardly from the top edge of each of the bowls and joins the two bowls.

'Each shelf is provided with the three openings 16 for distance to accommodate the ends of the protection pads j 21. These pads 21 are crossed over the bottom of each A'stitf, four-sided, protectingtube, such as a tube of stiff corrugated paper surrounds each stack, or there may be a single tube around two or more stacks. If a single tube surrounds more than one stack there must be some sort of spacer within the tube separating the individual stacks from one another and protecting the sinks of one stack from being damaged by contact with a sink in the other stack. Folded corrugated corners in the corner of each tube fit snugly against the corners of the sink shelves, holding them in alignment and cushioning any sharp blows to which the corners of the package are subjected.

The sinks are'thus individually protected on all sides by cushioning material and ride firmly stacked on one another.

The palletized sinks are further described in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which- FIG. 1 is an, exploded view showing one complete stack, one partial stack of double sinks, the spacer tubes and protection pads for the exposed bottom of the top sink of the partial stack, the base cover, and the pallet;

PEG. 2 is a view in perspective of the finished package; FIG. 3 is a view in perspective of two stacks of single kitchen sinks or lavatories in separate protecting tubes of corrugated paper; and

FIG. 4 is an exploded view in perspective of a plug used in the bottom openings of the stacks of sinks shown in FIGURE 3, with the strap stapled to the plug, and the plug above the opening in the sink.

The pallet 5 of FIGURES 1 and 2 is formed with a bowl and their ends are tucked into the space between the top edge of the spacer tube and the bottom surface of the bowl to insulate the bottom of each bowl from contact with the bowl below it. I

In palletizing the sinks, the individual sinks are stacked with spacer tubes and protection pads between each two, as described. Then a disposible four sided corrugated tube 25 of fiberboard or the like is lowered over each complete stack of the sinks, or over two or more adjacent stacks. .In the preferred package, a single such tube 25 is used for each stack, as shown. The tube 25 ispreferably of stiff fiberboard. The corner cushions 27 are preferably made oftwo plies of corrugated fiberboard.

The shelves of the sinks fit snugly within these. There is no play, and the corner cushions are ofsuch thickness that they protect thesinks from any sharp blow against the corner of the package.

If a single tube 25 is used to cover two or more; stacks of sinks, a spacer is placed between each two stacks. Thismay be a single stilt sheet of fiberboardwhich pref erably is wide enough to extend more of the distance from one wall of the tube 25 tothe other. Corner cushions may be provided at the inside corners of the sinks, but are not as necessary as the cushions in the corners of the tube 25 because the inside corners are not as exposed to blows.

Notches 30 are provided in the top edges of opposite walls of each tube 25. The bottoms of these notches are no higher than the level of the shelf of the top sink. A strap 32 is tightened around the supporting plate 6 of the pallet and draws the sinks and the tube 25 to the base cover 10. Ordinary tightening means, with ends of the strap overlapping may be used. Such means is not shown because it is on the other side of the package. If there are two stacks of sinks inverted on a single pallet, a single strap is advantageously used to hold both stacks in alignment, with a single tube 25 around each stack or around both stacks. The strap 32 is, for example, /1- inch standard steel strapping. It fits between the two bowls of the top sink of each stack and is drawn tight to prevent any shifting of the sinks and the corrugated tubes 25. A protection pad similar to the pad 21 may be located under the strap and over the edges of the top sink shelf, but preferably, a portion of the tube 25 is folded over to protect the edge of the sink, as more fully explained in connection with FIGURE 3.

FIGURES 3 and 4 illustrate the'palletizing of porcelainized single sinks 40, or lavatories. Each has a large opening 41 in its bottom for a drain fixture. The plug 44 These spacer tubes are of 'within the opening. "generally comparable in its assembly to that shown in fits into this. It may be any desired shape, such as a circular plug that fits the hole, etc. The strap '46 is stapled to this plug by the staple 47. This prevents any great movement sideways of the stack, the movement being limited by the amount of-play permitted the plug In other respects the package is FIGURES 1 and 2. There may be two stacks within one outer protective tube as there described.

'One convenient way of protecting the edges of the shelf of the top sink from being damaged by the strap, is to bend a portion of the container 48 against the edge of the sink. This can be done by merely bending the top edge of the container against the strap. It is best to die cut the edges of the area which are to be folded as a flap. When two containers are to be held on a single pallet, as in FIGURE 3, it is best to provide a shallow notch 48 in each of the opposite edges of each container just deep enough to accommodate the strap between the stacks of sinks.

bottom corners of these notches.

Die cuts 49 extend down from the The flaps 50 formed in this way arenot bent over on the sides of the containers between the stacks of sinks, but the flaps 50 in the two outside walls are bent over as indicated.

Although the use of a plug in the opening in the bottom of a sink, with the staple in the plug, has been described more particularly in connection .with a single 'sink, double sinks may be similarly packaged, using two straps. Any means of attaching the strap to such a plug may be employed.

Various modifications of the details shown and described may be made without departing from the inven- 'tion which is covered in the following claims.

What I claim is:

' 1. A package of porcelain-enameled sinks, each with a substantially fiat shelf extending outwardly from the top "the notches and rising upward therefrom to a location on the stack where it is held to prevent it from moving any substantial distance to one side and the other on the stack.

2. The package of claim '1 in which the sinks are double sinks, each having two bowls and the strap is tightened in the depression between the two bowls of the sink at the top of the stack.

3. The package of claim 1 in which there is an opening in the bottom of the bowl of each sink, and there is a plug in the opening of the sink at the top of the stack 'with the strap fastened to the plug.

'4. The package of claim 1 in which 'each sink is a single sink with an opening in the bottom of the bowl thereof, and there is a plug in the opening in the'sink at the top of the stack with the strap fastened to the plug.

5. The package of claim 1 in which the protective insulation includes a tubular fiberboard spacer resting on each inverted sink shelf and at least partially supporting the bowl above it. v

6. The package of claim 1 which includes cushioning means between the edge of each sink shelf and at least one corner of the protecting tube that surrounds the stack.

7. The package of claim' 1 in which the protecting tube which surrounds the stack is of disposable fiberboard which contains an additional thickness of fiberboard located only in each corner thereof to make tight contact with corners of the sinks.

8. The package of claim 1 in which there are two stacks of sinks on the pallet, each enclosed in a separate vertical tube, with both stacks and tubes held to the pallet by a single strap.

9. The package of claim 1 in which the tube is cut down from each corner of at least one of the notches and the strap holds the resulting flap against the adjacent edge of the top sink.

References Cited in the tile of this patent UNITEDSTATES PATENTS 2,611,569 Coleman et al. Sept. '23, 1952 2,762,551 Fallert Sept. 11, 1956 FOREIGN PATENTS 519,119 Germany Feb. "24, 1931 

